Markell creates group to support implementation of new federal education law

Markell Creates Group to Support Implementation of New
Federal Education Law

Calling a new federal
education law an opportunity for teachers, school leaders, parents, and others
to build on record graduation rates and other progress happening in Delaware
schools, Governor Jack Markell today signed Executive Order 62,
which brings together a diverse group of stakeholders to provide input for the
state plan required by the federal Every Students Succeeds Act (ESSA). The
plan, which the U.S. Department of Education is expected to require by sometime
next year, will detail efforts to:

·
Implement
academic standards aligned with what students need to know stay on track for
success in college and the workplace;

·
Ensure students
from all backgrounds have access to high-quality educational opportunities from
pre-school through high school;

·
Support training,
retention, and professional advancement of great educators; and

·
Track progress of
schools across a variety of measures, not limited to test scores, and identify
ways to offer additional support where students are struggling.

The Governor, who signed E.O.
62 at Lewis Elementary School, noted that improvements from the last major
federal education law, No Child Left Behind, mean that states have more
flexibility in ways to support students, including how to measure schools’
progress and new opportunities to focus on early childhood education, which has
been a top priority of the Markell Administration.

“We should all be proud of
the progress we have made over the last few years, when we have seen thousands
more low-income families enroll children in high-quality early childhood
programs, recorded the fastest-growing graduation rate in the country, offered
thousands more students the chance to earn workplace experience and college credit
while in high school, and given more students access to college,” said Markell.

“ESSA provides an exciting
chance for us to build on that momentum – to better support and attract great
teachers and ensure all of our students have access to the education they
deserve, no matter their backgrounds. More flexibility in how states approach
these issues means more responsibility for us to make sound decisions and as we
develop our state’s plan under ESSA. The
executive order I sign today will help engage our teachers, school leaders,
parents, and other advocates to ensure a successful process.”

The Executive Order outlines
the variety of education leaders and advocates who must be represented on the
committee and provides the group with the opportunity to review drafts of the
state plan and submit recommendations to the Secretary of Education. A chair
will be announced in advance of the first meeting and the group will include
representatives of:

·
Parents in every
county

·
Educators from
urban and rural communities

·
The State Board
of Education

·
The Delaware
State Education Association

·
The Delaware Association
of School Administrators

·
The Delaware
School Board’s Association

·
The Delaware
Charter School Network

·
The Wilmington
Education Improvement Commission

·
The Early
Childhood Council

·
Delaware English
Language Teachers and Advocates

·
An organization
advocating for students with disabilities

·
Delaware’s
business community

·
Workforce
development programs

·
The General
Assembly

“After engaging in initial
discussions with a wide variety of education stakeholders on development of our
ESSA plan, this advisory committee represents an important next step in
supporting our communication with teachers, administrators, and parents who are
working hard to support our students,” said Delaware Education Secretary Steve
Godowsky. “This group will help ensure we fully consider a wide range of
perspectives and set our state on a path of continued improvement.”

The department also will
engage representatives of stakeholder groups in two discussion groups. The
first group will focus discussions on technical topics related to Measures of
School Success and Reporting. The second group will focus discussions on
provisions for Student and School Supports. Participants for these topical
discussion groups can be nominated on the department’s ESSA web site through
September 9, 2016. The discussion groups will provide information to the
Advisory group created by this Executive Order.

To further support engagement
of the broader education community, the Department of Education has announced a
series of Community Conversations later this month during which
teachers, administrators, and others will offer input on specific questions
that the state must address in its plan. These discussions will take place at
the following times and locations: